Canada to buy Trans Mountain pipeline project

Eli Ridder | The Avro Post

Canada’s government offered to buy the contentious Trans Mountain pipeline project from its original private developer Kinder Morgan for $4.5 billion, the federal finance and environment minister’s announced on Tuesday.

‘We believe this is the best way to protect thousands of well-paid jobs’, and an ‘investment to protect Canada’s future’, Mr. Morneau told gathered reporters in Ottawa during a special press conference.

The Liberal Party finance minister said once sale is complete, Canada will continue the construction on its own and that the government intends to eventually sell project, saying that the Justin Trudeau administration is already speaking to interested parties.

“We see the project under federal jurisdiction,” Morneau said in regards to the resistance from British Colombia’s Premier John Horgan, who has caused several months of delays that incited tensions with Alberta, where the pipeline starts at the oil sands.

The purchase amount is over double the cost of what Kinder Morgan would have originally built the pipeline, but construction costs would add more as Morneau said the project would still need to spend more in construction.

Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr, speaking and answering reporter questions alongside Morneau at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa, said the plan does not sacrifice the environment for the economic benefits.

“Canadians want both and we can have both,” he said.

Selling private

The government of Canada plans to sell the Trans Mountain pipeline project to private investors, with minister Bill Morneau saying that Indigenous groups and pension funds have already expressed interest in a purchase.

Until a sale, it will proceed under the ownership of a Crown corporation with the deal expected to close in August, a project Morneau says is in the national interest, and proceeding will preserve jobs, reassure investors and get resources to world markets.

Conservative Party politicians said in response to the news of the government’s offer that it supported the move but that the move was necessary only because of federal Liberal mismanagement, CBC News’ Chris Hall reported.

It is unclear exactly what the federal New Democratic Party’s response will be as the government’s of both British Columbia and Alberta are NDP, with Mr. Horgan’s administration against the pipeline and Alberta’s led by Rachel Notley is for it.

More details to follow. Image of the conference from social media.

Share this:

Like this:

Related

Eli Ridder is a journalism student at the University of Guelph-Humber and a senior correspondent for multiple independent publications including, but not limited to, The Anon Journal, Berning Media Network and the Ribbon. Find out more at eliridder.ca